New York, Feb 13, 2026, 15:50 EST — Regular session
- AT&T shares slipped Friday afternoon, pulling back after three consecutive sessions of gains that ended with Thursday’s close.
- RBC Capital bumped its price target up to $31 from $29 and stuck with an Outperform rating.
- Fed minutes land Wednesday, right before investors break for a long weekend.
AT&T Inc slid 14 cents to $28.66 in afternoon trading Friday, off about 0.5%. Shares moved in a band from $28.42 to $28.84.
Investors weighed a U.S. inflation reading showing consumer prices in January came in below forecasts, with rate cut bets shifting in response. Telecom shares, known for their income appeal, tend to move when expectations for rates change—sometimes as much as on company news.
RBC Capital bumped its price target on AT&T up to $31 from $29 on Thursday, sticking with an Outperform call. Analyst Jonathan Atkin cited the company’s fiber rollout as a “long-term growth trajectory,” and highlighted a quicker wind-down of legacy services, saying that’s boosting free cash flow — what’s left after costs and capital spending are covered. TipRanks
AT&T ended Thursday up 1.16% at $28.80, making it three winning sessions in a row. Trading volume was hefty—roughly 69.7 million shares changed hands, according to MarketWatch data.
By mid-afternoon, the broader market had barely budged. The SPDR S&P 500 ETF, which tracks the benchmark, slipped roughly 0.1%.
Peers didn’t move in lockstep. Verizon slipped roughly 0.9%. T-Mobile, though, added about 1.5%. The group’s trading showed how individual names can diverge sharply, even with little action elsewhere.
Back in late January, AT&T projected its adjusted earnings for 2026 would land between $2.25 and $2.35 per share. The company also put out a target for free cash flow in 2028, aiming for more than $21 billion. AT&T is banking on its 5G and fiber investments as it works to overhaul its business.
Management’s been signaling a shift in how it presents the numbers. On the most recent earnings call, CEO John Stankey told investors that, starting with first quarter results, AT&T will break out domestic wireless and fiber separately from its “legacy” business in new segment reporting. ATT Investor Relations
Still, familiar dangers haven’t gone anywhere. Wireless price wars can erupt without warning, and fiber rollouts don’t come cheap—if customer sign-ups stall or expenses overrun, those cash targets will be tougher to reach.
With U.S. markets shut Monday for Washington’s Birthday/Presidents Day, the calendar takes the lead. The next focal point for investors: minutes from the Federal Reserve’s Jan. 27-28 meeting, due out Wednesday at 2 p.m. ET. That release could move the needle on rate expectations.
